Published: Thursday, February 14, 2013 at 8:23 p.m.

Last Modified: Thursday, February 14, 2013 at 8:23 p.m.

ANNA MARIA - The battle lines being drawn in this tiny, nationally known resort community are stark, and reminiscent of the long-standing debate in Southwest Florida: growth vs. no-growth.

Like other tussles, this one also could end up being settled by the courts, with property owners facing a significant cut to the values of their properties threatening lawsuits if the Anna Maria City Commission continues on its path to putting new limits on how much house can be built on a given lot.

The hubbub over building height and square feet began in earnest during January — following and echoing a similar struggle that occurred in the City of Holmes Beach, the neighboring community to the south.

Both were reactions to the flurry of construction in multi-bedroom, three-story homes designed to maximize rental profits.

To advocates of maintaining the island charm that has attracted so many residents, national travel writers and subsequent tourists, the effort to rein in development was long overdue.

But to investors who recently bought a $500,000 tear-down under the old rules — which would let them build a three-story home with a rooftop deck — the City Commission's recent moves are financial fighting words.

“There is a huge legal battle that is about to happen,” said Joe Varner, owner of AnnaMariaVacations.com.

While Varner's business is renting out vacation homes, he also owns land within the city that would be directly affected by the commission's plan to curb construction.

“I am very upset,” Varner said. “It significantly limits the value and the use of my property.”

Building moratorium

As of Jan. 31, the city commissions imposed a temporary freeze on construction.

Under discussion now are two alternatives to make the island's low-rise status more permanent.

One would limit the height of a building's roof above the road to 27 feet — a 10-foot drop from the current 37 — basically eliminating new three-story houses.

An alternative would leave height alone and instead copy a newly implemented rule from Holmes Beach, where a land-area ratio rule dictates how much air-conditioned space a developer can put on a lot.

Roughly speaking, a 10,000 square foot lot would be big enough for 4,000 square feet under air. On a 75-by-100-foot lot, the house could be 3,000 square feet. On a 50-by-100-foot lot, the owner would be limited to 2,000 feet.

The result would not be quite as onerous for those who were about to build, but would still be a substantial limit in a city where tear-downs can easily run $400,000, even without a view.

“To get closer to the water, they can get more like $500,000 to $800,000,” Varner said.

'Dead in the water'

The property that took the biggest hit from the freeze on new permits is Bimini Cove, owned by Boneau Enterprises LLC.

The development's owners say they were within two weeks of asking for building permits when commissioners imposed their temporary moratorium.

“The project is dead in the water,” said Randy Whitmer, Boneau's chief representative in this region.

“It was going to be two floors over parking, consistent with what you see throughout Anna Maria,” Whitmer said.

Steve Murray, Whitmer's partner, acknowledged that the big crowds now being driven to City Hall for Thursday night gatherings on the topic are split evenly between no-growth advocates and those pushing property rights.

“But the people who want things quiet and quaint don't have a reason to sue,” Murray said. “It is people who are being subjected to potential loss. They are the ones. People being subjected to a change in the ordinance that affects what they can do with their property.

“They feel aggrieved.”

But Anna Maria Mayor SueLynn said she and the five-member city commission are just trying to make full-time residents happy.

“The people who live here — the voters — they really like the idea of 27 feet,” she said.

While some real estate agents are loudly proclaiming that holding down the height of buildings would hurt property values, SueLynn sees it another way: “If anything, it will, in the end, result in properties maintaining their value and going up.”

“I mean, people choose to come here because it is not filled with high-rises and condominiums. That is why people come here, for the ambience, the small-town feel,” the mayor said.

But he also just spent $505,000 on a two-bedroom tear-down precisely because he could get a view from the third story that he plans to build on the site.

The property lies across the street from the water, and has no views from the current second-floor living level. Because of federal flood rules, the home Ledgerwood bought has a first floor that is non-residential, just space for cars, lawn gear, maybe a changing room for the pool.

Before he bought the property in October, Ledgerwood went so far as to hire a cherry picker so that he and builder Shawn Kaleta could see what the view would be like if it went up to the then-height limit of 37 feet.

“We went up to the third level and it was like ‘Oh my God!' Everything opened up. And that was obviously the enticement to buying the place.”

A guessing game

It is too early to say what Anna Maria's proposed ordinance will do to property values.

That is mostly because the city is so far just buying time while it comes up with new rules.

So far, a few potential buyers have backed out of contracts, according to Varner and to Island Real Estate agent John van Zandt.

“I have had more than one buyer say ‘This is too scary for me. Let's look elsewhere,' ” van Zandt said.

<p><em>ANNA MARIA</em> - The battle lines being drawn in this tiny, nationally known resort community are stark, and reminiscent of the long-standing debate in Southwest Florida: growth vs. no-growth.</p><p>Like other tussles, this one also could end up being settled by the courts, with property owners facing a significant cut to the values of their properties threatening lawsuits if the Anna Maria City Commission continues on its path to putting new limits on how much house can be built on a given lot.</p><p>The hubbub over building height and square feet began in earnest during January — following and echoing a similar struggle that occurred in the City of Holmes Beach, the neighboring community to the south.</p><p>Both were reactions to the flurry of construction in multi-bedroom, three-story homes designed to maximize rental profits.</p><p>To advocates of maintaining the island charm that has attracted so many residents, national travel writers and subsequent tourists, the effort to rein in development was long overdue.</p><p>But to investors who recently bought a $500,000 tear-down under the old rules — which would let them build a three-story home with a rooftop deck — the City Commission's recent moves are financial fighting words.</p><p>“There is a huge legal battle that is about to happen,” said Joe Varner, owner of AnnaMariaVacations.com.</p><p>While Varner's business is renting out vacation homes, he also owns land within the city that would be directly affected by the commission's plan to curb construction.</p><p>“I am very upset,” Varner said. “It significantly limits the value and the use of my property.”</p><p><B>Building moratorium</b></p><p>As of Jan. 31, the city commissions imposed a temporary freeze on construction.</p><p>Under discussion now are two alternatives to make the island's low-rise status more permanent.</p><p>One would limit the height of a building's roof above the road to 27 feet — a 10-foot drop from the current 37 — basically eliminating new three-story houses.</p><p>An alternative would leave height alone and instead copy a newly implemented rule from Holmes Beach, where a land-area ratio rule dictates how much air-conditioned space a developer can put on a lot.</p><p>Roughly speaking, a 10,000 square foot lot would be big enough for 4,000 square feet under air. On a 75-by-100-foot lot, the house could be 3,000 square feet. On a 50-by-100-foot lot, the owner would be limited to 2,000 feet.</p><p>The result would not be quite as onerous for those who were about to build, but would still be a substantial limit in a city where tear-downs can easily run $400,000, even without a view.</p><p>“To get closer to the water, they can get more like $500,000 to $800,000,” Varner said.</p><p><B>'Dead in the water'</B></p><p>The property that took the biggest hit from the freeze on new permits is Bimini Cove, owned by Boneau Enterprises LLC.</p><p>The development's owners say they were within two weeks of asking for building permits when commissioners imposed their temporary moratorium.</p><p>“The project is dead in the water,” said Randy Whitmer, Boneau's chief representative in this region.</p><p>Working with Murray Realty and Murray Homes, Boneau planned to build 14 side-by-side, million-dollar waterfront homes. </p><p>“It was going to be two floors over parking, consistent with what you see throughout Anna Maria,” Whitmer said.</p><p>Steve Murray, Whitmer's partner, acknowledged that the big crowds now being driven to City Hall for Thursday night gatherings on the topic are split evenly between no-growth advocates and those pushing property rights.</p><p>“But the people who want things quiet and quaint don't have a reason to sue,” Murray said. “It is people who are being subjected to potential loss. They are the ones. People being subjected to a change in the ordinance that affects what they can do with their property.</p><p>“They feel aggrieved.”</p><p>But Anna Maria Mayor SueLynn said she and the five-member city commission are just trying to make full-time residents happy.</p><p>“The people who live here — the voters — they really like the idea of 27 feet,” she said.</p><p>While some real estate agents are loudly proclaiming that holding down the height of buildings would hurt property values, SueLynn sees it another way: “If anything, it will, in the end, result in properties maintaining their value and going up.”</p><p>“I mean, people choose to come here because it is not filled with high-rises and condominiums. That is why people come here, for the ambience, the small-town feel,” the mayor said.</p><p><B>View from the top</b></p><p>Chicago's Scott Ledgerwood acknowledges liking the small-town feel of Anna Maria.</p><p>But he also just spent $505,000 on a two-bedroom tear-down precisely because he could get a view from the third story that he plans to build on the site.</p><p>The property lies across the street from the water, and has no views from the current second-floor living level. Because of federal flood rules, the home Ledgerwood bought has a first floor that is non-residential, just space for cars, lawn gear, maybe a changing room for the pool.</p><p>Before he bought the property in October, Ledgerwood went so far as to hire a cherry picker so that he and builder Shawn Kaleta could see what the view would be like if it went up to the then-height limit of 37 feet.</p><p>“We went up to the third level and it was like 'Oh my God!' Everything opened up. And that was obviously the enticement to buying the place.”</p><p><B>A guessing game</b></p><p>It is too early to say what Anna Maria's proposed ordinance will do to property values.</p><p>That is mostly because the city is so far just buying time while it comes up with new rules.</p><p>So far, a few potential buyers have backed out of contracts, according to Varner and to Island Real Estate agent John van Zandt.</p><p>“I have had more than one buyer say 'This is too scary for me. Let's look elsewhere,' ” van Zandt said.</p><p>But long-time Anna Maria builder and architect Joe Ungvarsky agrees with the SueLynn, Anna Maria's mayor, that prices — if anything — will go higher.</p><p>“No one wants rentals out here,” Ungvarsky said. “The only people you hear screaming are the real estate people, and there's a lot of them — a lot who make money off rentals.”</p>